31st Mar 2016 11:34
LONDON (Alliance News) - Kennedy Ventures PLC said Thursday its pretax loss for the first half of its financial year was six times greater than a year earlier coming solely from higher administrative costs, but said it was approaching a period of positive cash generation.
Kennedy owns a 75% stake in African Tantalum Pty Ltd, which is working on the Tantalite Valley tantalite project in Namibia.
Kennedy said its pretax loss for the six months to December 31 was GBP368,000 from GBP57,000 the previous year, solely coming from administrative expenses. It said its cash balance at December 31 was GBP233,000 from GBP350,000 a year earlier.
Kennedy does not plan to pay an interim dividend, it said.
The company said, during the first half, Aftan has reached key milestones, entering into a long term offtake agreement with a major leading manufacturer of electrical components for the full production from Aftan, and having obtained its explosives magazines licence, which enables it to take delivery of and store explosives at the mine.
Kennedy said the first phase of its tantalite production at the project is expected in late 2016, whilst the second phase will take place in mid-2017, when it ramps up production. It has an initial throughput target of 10,500 tonnes per month.
"The successful execution of Aftan's long term offtake agreement demonstrates the demand that exists in the market for its high quality product. With this demand set to grow from the ever increasing development and use of electronic devices across the globe, Aftan is well positioned to become a leading supplier," Chief Executive Peter Hibberd said.
Shares in Kennedy were down 15% to 5.62 pence on Thursday.
By Hannah Boland; [email protected]; @Hannaheboland
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